Jeffrey forged a path out of the chaotic battlefield, carrying Noah in his arms. A few monsters lunged at them along the way, but Steve made short work of the creatures.

"It's okay, I can walk now." The carnage continued, but Noah was far enough that the dying creatures' essence no longer hovered towards him.

Noah was not an expert at analyzing the nuances of human-shark hybrid expressions, but even to his untrained eye, Jeffrey's appearance was concerning. His jaw hung partially agape, trembling ever so slightly, while his once-piercing black eyes seemed dulled, clouded with an unsettling haze.

"Jeffrey, are you okay?" The werehuman took the brunt of the monstrous rodent horde's assault and Noah was worried that he was seriously injured.

Jeffrey parted his jaws as if to speak, or so Noah presumed, but instead, a thundering belch erupted from within him. Black feathers scattered from his gaping maw, enveloping Noah in a stench cloud tainted with the foul odor of blood and partially digested raw meat.

Noah gagged; it was the vilest thing he has ever had the misfortune of smelling. "Put me down right now!"

"Oh, pardon me. I think I overate." The towering werehuman carefully lowered Noah, before they continued their retreat.

'Huh...'

With his senses finally free from being overwhelmed, Noah took stock of his minions. By his side, of course, marched Steve, ever vigilant and protective. Glancing back towards the still ongoing battle, Noah spotted the maimed figure of Claws, sprinting in their direction.

However, there was another addition to their company. One of the rodents that Noah had raised during the battle appeared to have survived the onslaught. With the earlier mental command to retreat issued to his minions, the skeletal monster was now also heading towards the group.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

The monstrous behemoth's ominous silhouette remained visible in the distance, its tentacle-like appendages hammering the ground, crushing multitudes of monsters with each blow. This battle was a stark reminder of the true terror that plagued this nightmarish world. While a well-armed and trained military unit could contend with the occasional monster pack, the resulting chaos would inevitably draw out more and more creatures, and risk stirring dormant existences that should remain undisturbed.

The group eventually set up camp within the crumbling ruins of a pre-Fall building. Despite being covered with bloody gashes, Jeffrey appeared more perturbed by the sheer number of monsters he had gorged on during the battle. Eventually, he succumbed to a food coma, his slumber interrupted by occasional belches echoing through the dead silence of the ruins.

Noah, on the other hand, felt invigorated. The influx of essence that he had absorbed during this battle had far surpassed all that he had accumulated during his time being stranded beyond The Arc's protective walls.

"Thanks for looking out for me."

Noah rested his hand atop Steve's tattered and battered plate armor, channeling essence into his skeletal guardian, mending a few shimmering nicks etched into his bones. It didn't escape Noah's notice that although Steve was commanded to assist Claws in his fight against the alpha rodent, the undead warrior changed course and swiftly came to his aid, upon perceiving that Noah was in trouble.

It didn't take long to fix up Steve and afterwards Noah had the undead warrior stand guard over the group. Turning his attention towards Claws, the skeletal reptile appeared to have a rather haughty attitude despite looking like it just came out of a meat grinder... or, rather, a bone grinder.

"What's with you...?"

Fixing Claws took longer and demanded a more substantial infusion of essence. One of its arms hung limply from its socket, while a portion of the undead lizard's rib cage was missing, the exposed stumps were coated in a faint, foamy green glow.

The mending of Claws had eventually turned out to be swifter than Noah had initially anticipated, likely due to him being fueled by the surge of power from the battle. With Claws now fully restored, Noah assigned it to join Steve in guarding over the group.

That left his last and newest minion. The skeletal rodent appeared rather skittish, kind of reminding Noah of himself during his first day at his job, as it stood by the worn wall, unsure about what to do with itself. To Noah, his latest minion appeared like a smaller, frailer version of Claws.

"What am I supposed to do with you?"

Silas' voice echoed inside of Noah's mind, as he responded: "How about turning the little critter into a weapon?"